African-American Civil Rights Movement

Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life and ideas of Frederick Douglass, born to slavery.

The insurgent popular movements that changed America's democracy

Sam Cooke's song became synonymous with the American civil rights movement

Peaches Golding OBE, nominates African American politician Shirley Chisholm.

Lindsay Johns explains the inspiration he draws from a black and white photo at his desk.

How an unlikely friendship led to Harlem poet Langston Hughes' epic 1964 BBC radio series.

Journalist Ben Anderson explains how The Autobiography of Malcolm X inspired him.

How two African-American athletes protested against racism at the 1968 Olympic Games.

Sam Cooke's A Change Is Gonna Come has become an anthem for civil rights in the USA.

David McAlmont tells the glittering tale of Sylvester James and his disco hit Mighty Real.

Matthew Parris meets financial guru Alvin Hall, whose hero is James Baldwin.

Saxophonist Archie Shepp on life as a black American in Paris.

Courtney Pine explores John Coltrane's A Love Supreme, fifty years after its release.

Ida B. Wells the African American civil rights activist is chosen by Baroness Oona King

Decades after his death, why does Sun Ra continue to inspire an obsessive following?

Alvin Hall on Motown's eight Black Forum spoken word records with the people behind them.

Gary Younge visits The Welsh Window of Alabama a symbol of the fight for civil rights.

Cerys Matthews celebrates one of her musical heroines, gospel singer Mahalia Jackson.